Custom, classic cars burn up in flames

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) – From the outside, the building that holds King Kong Custom looks bad enough.

But only inside can you get a true sense of what was lost here.

Kurt Nilson got the call around 6:00 a.m. Friday that the custom car shop he co-owns was on fire.

Albuquerque firefighters were able to keep the building standing, but many of its contents are badly damaged.

You can see bubbles coming up under the white and blue paint coat on a classic Volkswagen 21-window bus. A truck on a lift appears in rough shape. Nilson says there was also a pair of Chevelle Super Sport cars and a 1969 Pontiac GTO inside as well as several other cars.

“These cars have sentimental value to their owners as well as actual value,” Nilson said.

AFD’s investigation into the cause of the fire is still ongoing. Nilson isn’t sure what the total amount of damages from the fire will add up to.

“We work really hard, we put in long hours and struggle every day to work on building a business up,” Nilson said. “To have everything torn down like this is pretty tough.”